Tag Archives: 135 Film

The Kodak Instamatic is a camera that I recall from my childhood. My parents and grandparents had them before moving to Kodak 110 cameras in the 1970’s. Kodak’s 126 film was introduced in 1963 and was marketed as an easy-load film cartridge. The film itself is 35mm film, paper backed, with a single sprocket hole per frame to allow each 28 x 28mm shot to advance through the camera. It wasn’t until 1987 that Kodak discontinued the format.

Camerhack in Italy has designed and 3-D prints a 135 (35mm) to 126 film adapter kit. The cartridge allows you to load standard 35mm film into a reusable cartridge so it can be used in a classic Kodak Instamatic, or any other camera that used 126 film. Claudio from Camerhack includes a detailed instruction booklet that guides you through the process. And even better, he’s also created a YouTube video that walks you step-by-step through loading, shooting and re-spooling.

Plan to sacrifice a roll of 35mm film. This will help you practice loading the cartridge in the light. When you’re ready to load your favorite film in the adapter, you’ll be ready to do it in the dark.

With your sacrificed roll of film, practice advancing the film in the camera. Instamatic cameras have a needle inside that is tripped by a sprocket hole when the film is advanced. You’ll find that each camera does this a little different. For example, my Kodak Instamatic 300 and Kodak Hawkeye Instamatic advanced very differently. Which leads me to the most important tip.

Listen for the click. With my Kodak Instamatic 300, I had to press the shutter, take the shot, press the shutter button down (doesn’t actually open the shutter), advance the film until the shutter advance would CLICK. The key for me was holding the camera up to my ear and listening for that click to know that the film had advanced. The click is the key to success!

Following Claudio’s instructions, if you decided to roll the film (in the dark) back into a 35mm cartridge to have it processed at a lab, know that the sprocket holes will get a little chewed up by the camera. This is caused by the needle inside that I mentioned earlier. When you roll the film back into the cartridge, wind it slowly.

Only use a 24-exposure roll of 35mm film. Keep in mind that the original number of exposures on 126 film cartridges was 12 to 20. Using a 24-exposure roll should give you 16 to 20 images depending on the spacing between each shot. Using a smaller roll will also prevent the film from scratching when you load the film adapter.

Learning to bulk load is a simple and straight forward process: use some art tape to attach the film to the 35mm spool, placing the spool inside the cartridge, close the bulk loader, open the film gate, then slowly crank and decide the number of exposures on the roll. Is the expired film still good? To test the film, I loaded a cartridges with 12 exposures into my Canon Canonet G-III QL17. My conclusion, the film is good! There’s no haze or fogging, but the film definitely needs light. The best images from my test exposures surprisingly came from shooting at box speed, ISO 125.

Would you like a roll to test for yourself? Leave a comment on this post and tell me what camera you’ll use. I’ll pick a random comment on December 1, 2015, and send you a roll.

The images below are some of my favorites from a trip to Wyoming with Scott Smith in September. Along with some others from Utah and a family trip to Wyoming, Montana and Idaho in October.

Sunset at Powder Mountain Resort, Utah

Sunset at Powder Mountain Resort, Utah

Sunset at Powder Mountain Resort, Utah

Abandoned Farm Truck in Eden, Utah

Ben Lomond Hotel in Ogden, Utah

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Franklin County Sugar Co. in Preston, Idaho

Barn at Mormon Row – Antelope Flats, Wyoming

Cascade of the Firehole – Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park

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